


No Fireworks

by L_Moonshade



Series: Altered Realities [19]
Category: Highlander: The Series, Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: F/F, F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-16
Updated: 2015-09-16
Packaged: 2018-04-21 00:48:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 735
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4808546
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/L_Moonshade/pseuds/L_Moonshade
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In the end, there had been no real epiphany. None of them had been hurt badly enough that he worried about losing what he could have had before he'd even had it. No one had been captured and tortured, no one had gone missing. Later Kate would tease him, telling him he'd missed a perfectly good chance to fulfill a fan-fiction cliché, but he knew that wasn't a complaint. He'd figured out early on that she felt it necessary to subvert all the tropes. Unless it meant someone she cared about getting hurt, of course. She'd be happy to be a Mary Sue, if it meant protecting her family. But that was a whole other thing.</p>
            </blockquote>





	No Fireworks

No, Phil would tell his father later, there was no monumental event that made him realize he'd made his decision. In the end, what happened was this:

Phil was in his office well after he should have gone home, having worked through lunch to finish the massive amount of paperwork his assets seemed to generate. Kate, Methos, and Clint had done their own during the course of the day, Clint in the air duct above the office, Kate and Methos sharing Phil's couch. It had become such a normal occurrence that Phil hadn't really registered their presence, but he enjoyed it none the less. For them silence was more telling than speech, and it was flattering that they were comfortable being quiet around him. Eventually they finished and left, though he had no idea of the time.

He was deep in paperwork still when the door opened and he glanced up, smiling when he saw Kate and Methos. They smiled back and Phil's stomach did a little twist, something he hadn't felt in longer than he cared to admit. "Hey," he said. "I thought you'd gone home."

"We did, until it was brought to our attention that our favorite handler skipped lunch. Again," Methos said.

It was only then that Phil realized they weren't empty-handed. He could smell Chinese—his favorite—and his stomach grumbled, but not before it did that silly little flip again. "Thanks. I didn't realize how hungry I was."

"You never do," Kate said, fond exasperation evident in her voice.

"You didn't have to, though," he said, accepting the carton of orange beef. "It really isn't your job."

"Whatever gave you the impression that we think taking care of you is a _job_?" Methos asked, handing over some steamed rice and egg drop soup. "I thought we made it perfectly clear it's something we want to do."

It was the closest they'd come to talking about their offer since his birthday, though they really had shown him how much they cared. Not just since then, he thought, but ever since they'd trusted him to help them end a threat that had been hanging over Methos' head for centuries, and on nothing more than his word that the Doctor had sent him. He watched them dig out their own food, grateful for their company, listened to them fight over the extra dumpling in the amused tones that always colored their arguments. He felt a wave of affection and awe that they wanted to share this with him, that Kate was willing to forgo sex, that Methos was willing to go through the pain of loss. He thought about the possibility of seeing the opera with her, going to the movies with Methos, sitting at home and snarking at bad TV with the both of them and allowed himself to admit that he wanted it in a way he hadn't wanted anything in a long, long time.

Even so, he didn't realize he'd made his decision until he opened his mouth and said, "Okay."

They looked up at him with open, hopeful expressions and here was another compliment; they let him see what they were feeling in a way they did with very few people. "Just so we're clear, would you care to explain what you're okay-ing?" Methos said.

"We really would hate to misinterpret."

Phil hid a smile. "Okay, I'd like to start dating you. I was going to drag Clint home with me for Christmas. You should come, too."

"Taking us to meet the family already?" Methos teased.

Phil didn't even pretend to argue or play it off, giving them a warm smile that made him realize he let them see him in a way he did with very few people. "Yes," he said simply.

The beaming smiles he got in response made his heart flutter in a way that wasn't unpleasant in the least. "We'll try not to embarrass you," Methos said.

He huffed. "Pop knows you already, remember?"

Kate groaned. "We're doomed."

Phil just laughed and didn't tell them that they were Canton's favorites, opting instead to join them on the sofa and steal the extra dumpling, joking and bantering with them in the same way he always did. It wouldn't be easy, he knew, but the three of them were stubborn enough to push through the tough times.

And he had no doubt it would be worth it.


End file.
